


I vow to thee, my country

by Katfish_1967



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: England centric, Gen, Hope, Pride, Song fic, The Blitz, World War Two
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-27
Updated: 2017-12-27
Packaged: 2019-02-22 17:46:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 605
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13172037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Katfish_1967/pseuds/Katfish_1967
Summary: It’s 1941 and England has lost hope. He is ready to admit defeat. One small action changes his mind.





	I vow to thee, my country

The year was 1941. Britain was devastated by the continuous German bombing. WWII was still ripping through Europe.

And England was in bed.

Not by choice, he’d want you to know.

If he was able, at this point in time, to stand (or even sit up properly) without his body feeling like it was being ripped apart, he would. The most pain was coming from his chest. His heart felt like it was being pulled from his body.

If he thought he was in pain, it had nothing on what London was currently feeling. But where as England was in bed in one of his many townhouses in the part of London that was spared from the worst of the bombing, London was working through her pain in a grubby tube station surrounded from people aged 5 months - 70 years old.

England and London had the same thought running through their heads.

‘What is the point of this bloody war?’

England knew what the point was. He knew that if he hadn’t fight he wouldn’t have been able to stop what was happening in Germany from happening in France or England.

England had to fight. He knew that. But he couldn’t find the energy anymore.

That’s when he heard it. 

A woman was sweeping rubble away from the doorway of her shop and humming a tune.

A familiar tune.

A very familiar tune.

Her 18 year old daughter heard the humming and started singing softly.

‘I vow to thee, my country,   
All earthly things above,  
Entire and whole and perfect,   
The service of my love.  
The love that asks no question, the love that stands the test,  
That lays upon the altar the dearest and the best;  
The love that never falters, the love that pays the price,  
The love that makes undaunted the final sacrifice.’

More and more people joined in after the girl started and by the start of the second verse everyone who could hear the song was singing.

‘And there's another country, I've heard of long ago,  
Most dear to them that love her, most great to them that know;  
We may not count her armies, we may not see her King;  
Her fortress is a faithful heart, her pride is suffering;  
And soul by soul and silently her shining bounds increase,  
And her ways are ways of gentleness, and all her paths are peace.’

To you this might’ve sounded like a pledge of allegiance to a mighty nation.  
But to England, and his inhabitants, it was an act of resistance. It was showing the Germans that no matter what you threw at the British, they will always recover, they will always live to see another day. To fight another war. And that was truly inspiring.

All these people, linked only through their shared suffering and pride, had brought tears to a great nations eyes.

That was all England needed. This small act, started by a teenager, was the push England craved. It relit a fire within him. A fire that burned hot and bright and pure.

How do I know this? Well you see I, Arthur Kirkland, was there all those years ago. I heard all the different voices becoming one in an angels chorus. I saw all the lives joining together to paint a picture of hope in one of Britain’s darkest hours.

And I felt the fire. I felt the determination and energy flowing through my veins. I felt the burst of pride and the swell of hope. I felt it all.

Do you want to know how?

Because I am England. And England is me.

The end

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed my story! I highly recommend you listen to the song ‘I vow to thee, my country’ as it truly is as inspiring as I made it out to be in the story. Constructive criticism is always accepted and kudos would be much appreciated.


End file.
